Spring 2018 CityStudioSTL Faculty Course Grants

The Sam Fox School awarded spring 2018 CityStudioSTL Faculty Course Grants to assistant professor Catalina Freixas and professor Ron Fondaw. These grants support faculty and encourage community-engaged teaching in the St. Louis region, and are awarded by a jury of faculty and community engagement staff. In fall 2018, these faculty will be supported for the following courses, which work with organizations and communities in the St. Louis region.

Segregation by Design: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis (A46 ARCH 457B)
Taught by assistant professor Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott of Harris-Stowe State University, the second iteration of this course seeks to examine the role of planning and design in fostering and maintaining segregation in American cities, including St. Louis. Students will create specific neighborhood plans to address challenges facing St. Louis communities, supported by mentors from both design and the humanities. This is the third year this course has been offered, and it has previously been supported by both CityStudioSTL as well as the The Divided City, a four-year urban humanities initiative organized by the Sam Fox School and the Center for the Humanities in Arts & Sciences, with support from the Mellon Foundation. More information about The Divided City is available here. New this year, 12th graders from Metro High School will collaborate with students enrolled in the course on the planning for the neighborhoods. The University of Missouri-St. Louis and Saint Louis University will also be invited to participate and enroll their students. In addition to its close partnership with member organizations of the St. Louis Association of Community Organizations (SLACO), the course will also partner with government organizations like the St. Louis Housing Authority and East-West Gateway. Read more about this course in our recent projects page here and in this recent article about student experiences in the seminar.

Art & Community Engagement (F20 ART 5445)In this graduate workshop for Master of Fine Arts candidates, professor Ron Fondaw builds on his years of experience guiding students through the research, development, and production of new, site-specific works for the facility of a local St. Louis organization. In fall 2018, students will work with Paraquad, a local organization that empowers people with disabilities to increase their independence through choice and opportunity. Paraquad recently completed an addition to their headquarters at 5200 Berthold Avenue, and they contacted Fondaw seeking advice on activating the space. In this first collaboration, students will identify specific sites in the building and create pieces that respond to the context, people, and experiences in Paraquad’s facilities. Over the course of the semester, students will meet with both clients and staff at Paraquad, present their proposals, and fabricate and install their final pieces. Previous iterations of this workshop have partnered with a day home for adults with autism and the Washington University Infectious Disease Clinic. Read more about a previous iteration of this course here.

About CityStudioSTL

CityStudioSTL is an initiative inspired by Design for Excellence, the Sam Fox School’s 10-year strategic plan. Originally offered in partnership with Washington University's Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship and Gina and Bill Wischmeyer, BA69/MArch71, this program has supported a series of community engagement and outreach projects in the city of St. Louis over the past several years. More information is available here>>

About CityStudioSTL Faculty Course Grants

CityStudioSTL Faculty Course Grants are open to all teaching faculty affiliated with the Sam Fox School. Funding may support existing community-engaged courses, adding a component of community-engaged teaching to an existing course, or developing and executing a new community-engaged course. Students must be involved in socially engaged and collaborative work with a St. Louis-based partner. Grant applications are due in the mid-fall and mid-spring semesters. More information is available here>>